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Merchants feel pocketbook payoff

While celebrity spottings tied with “August: Osage County” have thrilled local residents, some area merchants have felt a pocketbook payoff by providing the film production crew with much-needed accessories and miscellaneous props.

Scott and Caryn Nevins, owners of the Little Green Attic in Dewey, said that the members with the movie’s set design have stopped in their store on a frequent basis with detailed requests.

“They were very specific in what they wanted,” said Caryn Nevins. “They came back a lot and would be talking on the phone about an item. One person kept coming back, and so I got to thinking that something was up. I finally had to ask who she was.”

“I would guess that they spent about $1,000 on all the stuff they needed,” added Scott Nevins. “We loaned them some things as props, but they also bought a bunch of things. We actually had to get some (items) from our house that they could use.”

Among the items purchased or loaned were a shoe rack, watering can, wooden tables, various posters of musicians from the late 1970s and early 1980s and a workbench from the store’s backroom.

The Nevinses said they are busy “working all the time” to get too wrapped up in the progress on the high-profile film, but they are looking forward to watching the finished project.

“August: Osage County” is a dark comedy/drama based on Oklahoman Tracy Letts’ Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play about a tumultuous and dysfunctional family whose members come together after the alcoholic patriarch disappears.

A powerhouse cast has been selected to represent the extended clan in rural Oklahoma, with Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts starring as the mother-daughter duo.

“It will be cool to see some of the stuff from our store in the movie,” said Caryn Nevins.

Linger Longer Antiques in downtown Dewey also has had a good amount of foot traffic from the prop crew, according to owner Pat Cleveland.

“They’ve been in several times looking for very miscellaneous items. They bought some show pieces, a doll, some pop bottles, some lamps and other odds and ends,” said Cleveland.

She said that among one of the items that they couldn’t find was an old organ. Regardless, she said the crew spent a significant amount of money in the store on various props.

“They’ve been back more than once and have just been really friendly and introduced who they were and how they were working on the sets,” she said.

This isn’t the first time that Cleveland’s shop has been frequented by Hollywood set designers and prop personnel. In 2010, many crew and cast members, including Ben Affleck and another “young actress” from Terrence Malick’s film, “To the Wonder,” were visitors to the store and its soda fountain.

“It’s just a huge impact and economic boon to have them spending money here in Dewey and Bartlesville. We’re really appreciative and grateful for their business in the community,” she said.

Cleveland said she’s keeping up with the progress of “August: Osage County” and is hopeful that cast members also will stop by her store if time permits, given their “15 to 18 hour days” of work.

According to Bill Shambles, owner of Bar-Dew Antiques, prop members came through his doors a couple of months ago and purchased various items.

“They came in way back before the filming even started,” said Shambles. “They bought a kitchen door and some other nicks and knacks. It’s been so long now that I can’t remember what some of the other stuff was or how much money they spent.”

He said that the crew eventually introduced themselves and told him they were searching for items to use as props for the upcoming film.

“I’m from Osage County, so I’ll definitely watch the movie when it comes out,” he said.

Meanwhile, Terry Gurulé of Gan’s Mall and Annex in Bartlesville said the crew has been in several times in search of various items.

“I’d say they’ve been in here about three different times looking for things,” she said. “It’s hard to say what all they bought or how much money they spent because I know some of them also shopped in the other building.”

Among some of the items Gurulé noticed crew members purchasing included “lots of bottles, things from the ’60s, and a man’s shaving case.”

“The actor who plays Meryl Streep’s doctor came in here,” she said. “George Clooney hasn’t been in yet, though. If the movie needs an extra with Cruella de Vil hair, I’m that person.”

Principal filming for “August: Osage County” began last month and shooting for the movie is expected to continue in the area through late November. The Weinstein Company, an independent film studio managing production and distribution, is expected to release the film next year.